Goals
- My number 1 objective was to try and have the Hilux as true to it's origins, with a neat and clean look.
- Take an opportunity to change interior colour from blue to grey.
- Restore to as original where possible.
- Fit air conditioning during refit, including reseal all ducting foams and rubber.
As I stripped items out of the vehicle, I labelled and bagged as many bits and pieces as I could, so when the time came to refit everything, I would have a much better idea of where things came from.
Parts refurbished or replaced
Interior
- Had the Seated recovered,
- New roof lining
- Door trims including door rubbers, inner and outer glass seals, Bailey channels, winders, handles, clips and ¼ glass rebuilds
- Vinyl flooring and insulation installed
- New windscreen and rubbers
- Original Door mirrors and brackets from late model cruiser, made lower bracket to suit door.
- Genuine Toyota Taillights Replaced old worn screws nuts and bolts,
- clips with NOS Indicators, headlights, parkers.
- Parts reconditioned
- Recoloured all dash plastic parts to grey and repairs.
- Combination switch Wiper arm and linkages
- Rear-view mirror Steering wheel Door hinges
- Bonnet hinges
- Handbrake linkage
- B Pillar cab vents Strip down phase
- Stripped out the interior including floor covering
- complete dash,
With replacement parts, I tried to source or refurbish as many original parts that I could.
I tried aftermarket combination assembly and indicator but they failed to meet my expectations and functionality, so I ended up rebuilding the original combination assembly complete with new decals, that I sourced from overseas.
I rebuilt the steering wheel by cutting the rubber from the inside of the rim peeled it back and glued it with an epoxy 2 pack glue and taped it up to keep it uniform, painted the metal bits grey then I stitched an aftermarket cover over it.
I was aware of some of the dents in the guards and a minor rust hole in the driver side pillar. I suspected there might have been some behind the windscreen which I had never had out since I owned it. I did put some fish-oil behind the windscreen rubber on the odd occasion as I suspected there may have been some rust in there.
Some areas that I found with rust were behind the windscreen in the corners above the cowl panel, basically where the dust accumulates and stays damp for longer when there is rain about
Behind the front guard in the corner of the seam above where the wiring loom enters the cab (Common on this model)
There was minor rust in the floor pans which I was thankful for, so no major metal work was required there.
I found another dent in the driver’s side front guard and corner of the bonnet that I was not aware of.
I stripped all the old paint from the cab and panels down to bare metal with paint stripper.
A lot of the hard work was what I call Rust worm in the metal on the panels, but with a lot of elbow grease and phosphoric acid, I am confident I got on top of it. (Real metal is silver)